Secretts deal for watercress duck eggs

Waterercress Lane duck eggs are now available to more than 350 of the best London restaurants and gastro-pubs via Secretts Direct, the fruit and veg supplier run by Vernon Mascarenhas and part owned by Gregg Wallace of Masterchef fame.

The eggs will be supplied through Barsby Produce of Kings Lynn and confirms Watercress Lane as the UK’s premier supplier, at the forefront of championing duck eggs as a viable alternative to hens’.

Supplying the only eggs with ’Blue Duck’ accreditation, which guarantees freshness and flavour, the Norfolk based producer is now in pole position as the chefs’ favourite and its eggs will soon be tempting the celebrities who favour restaurants such as Corrigans, The Ivy, Scotts, La Gavroche and Nobu.

The deal to supply Secretts was set up by Watercress Lane’s new sales manager, Gavin Fisher. "They were not certain at first," said Gavin "but once Barsby’s got them to try the eggs they were immediately convinced. Secretts’ endorsement is a great boost for us and a justification of all our efforts to ensure a consistently fresh and high quality product."

Secretts’ order list reads like a Michelin star food guide and it has a reputation for innovation and enthusiasm which sits comfortably with Watercress Lane’s approach.


"The restaurants we service demand the highest quality and these eggs fulfill that brief," explains Vernon, whose clients include Michel Roux, Mark Hix, Gordon Ramsay, and Richard Corrigan. "They have a delicious rich yolk and are a perfect match for the seasonal asparagus we are producing at the moment.

"Over the past few years there has been a significant growth in interest from our restaurants and we will be stocking duck eggs all year round." He added: "Duck eggs are adaptable to most recipes but I think they are best in their simplest form - duck egg and toast soldiers is a classic."

Greater popularity with chefs is also reflected in growing consumer desire for a better tasting egg and Watercress Lane’s capability to provide duck eggs of a consistent quality and freshness throughout the year is giving retailers the reliability they need while the ’Blue Duck’ logo helps build consumer trust.

Watercress Lane’s ’Blue Duck’ accreditation scheme, introduced earlier this year, guarantees a top quality product produced to stringently high standards of freshness, food safety and animal welfare.

With the company also being the only UK producer to date stamp its eggs with both lay and best-before dates it seems to have overcome all the hurdles to duck eggs becoming a mainstream kitchen staple as well as the egg of choice for top chefs.